86400
by ChocolateYehet
Summary: Natsu wanted a divorce. Lucy asked for a week. Lucy had to go. Natsu needed to find his heart. All he asked for was one day. —Natsu&Lucy. —SequelTo10080


**So, some of you wanted a sequel, so here it is. Again, this story is not mine. When I read the original one, I was also desperate for a sequel, so I get what y'all feel. ****Btw, the translation of Lucy's last messages is the summary of the story.**

**Hope you enjoy this sequel, don't forget your reviews. Also, please read my other stories. I'd be overjoyed if you did.**

**Choco loves you all.**

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"_I love you, dragon. Thank you for everything..."_

–_10080_

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**86400**

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Natsu kept running as the tears kept falling down his face, mixing with the rain that kept pouring in the sky. He ran as fast and as far as his legs would take him, not caring where he was going, before finally falling to his knees in the middle of the park. The thought of losing Lucy never left his mind and he would be continually haunted by the memories of making his wife signing the divorce papers and vanishing the very next second.

He was never able to move on.

The guilt of not being there for Lucy and prioritizing everything else over her and the regret of not spending more time with the blonde plagued Natsu's soul and replaced a once happy man with the miserable fuck he is now. Months have passed and the feelings were as strong as ever, not allowing him to go to work without being punished with the pain of what his work had caused. It also caused a strain in his relationship with Lisanna, who he can't even look at properly without thinking of the pain on Lucy's face that fully enveloped his mind.

After several minutes, Natsu got himself up from his kneeling position and took in his surroundings. Everything he saw reminded him of Lucy and he couldn't help but cry and cry until his tears ran dry and he had no choice but to go "home".

The next day came and it was the first time in a while that Natsu wasn't haunted by nightmares of his memories. As he opened his eyes, he remembered that he had slept on the couch as he'd done a few times before, unable to sleep in the same bed with Lisanna without a wave of guilt and regret washing over him. As he sat up, he saw the time and realized that Lisanna had left for work. Moving over to the bedroom, he caught sight of Lucy's book, ripped in half and thrown across the room.

The rosy-haired man picked it up, as tears slowly started to fall down his cheeks, and re-read the author's note, laughing at how he was doing exactly what he had told his wife not to do for so many years. It was then that Natsu realized that this isn't a movie, _this is real life_, and he was able to end it how he wanted it to end. The way _they _wanted it to end.

Rummaging through his closet, he washed up and got changed, and before he left his apartment for the last time, he turned off his phone and left it on the kitchen counter along with a note for Lisanna and his engagement ring to her. He took in the apartment that caused all of this to happen one last time before slipping on the wedding ring that belonged to him and Lucy, nodding to himself and grabbing his jacket. He closed the door and left the city.

'_I can't do this anymore, Lisanna. Truthfully, I called off the divorce that day as well. I'm sorry. Goodbye.'_

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"Have the divorce papers been finalized yet?"

"No, Mr. Dragneel, they haven't. There has been debate on whether or not to continue with the file since your wife had passed away."

"Can you just call it off, then? That will make it easier right?"

"Yes, sir, but are you sure this is what you want?"

"I'm sure. And I would like to continue to keep our home. I will pay all the bills."

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Natsu arrived at his and Lucy's old estate late in the afternoon, inhaling before going inside. The interior was largely unchanged from the last time he set foot there, but a noticible silence and somber mood engulfed the entire house. Not even the sun ray's through the windows on the pastel blue walls of the living room could brighten it back up. There was one other difference in the house. Someone had set up a shrine to honor Lucy in the living room and catching sight of one of the photos of the shrine caused Natsu's eyes to fill with tears as he tried to fight off the thought of crying in front of his wife with every fiber of his being, but to no avail.

Tears continued to stream down his face as he picked up the photo of him and Lucy during their wedding. Both of them smiling happily, fully, and honestly in their matching white suit and wedding dress in front of a beautiful fountain with Lucy wrapped in Natsu's arms. Natsu was never able to smile properly ever since the day he left Lucy for the last time; most of her smiles being fake and forced out of acting like everything was just fine.

As he continued to explore his old home, he realized that everything was tidied up, and it looked like it had been done very recently. Upon reaching his and Lucy's old room, another wave of memories and emotions had consumed him as he fell to his knees beside his old bed. The thoughts of going to bed with his wife in his arms and waking up the same way. The guilt of making Lucy go to bed alone, while he messed around with Lisanna in the city stabbed him in the chest as the tears continued to fall while he muttered an apology to Lucy for not being the husband that he should've been.

Turning to the closet, he saw his clothes that he left behind were still there, washed and neatly folded after he had worn them that week. He picked out an outfit as well as his scale-scarf and got changed before heading back downstairs towards the shrine. He cupped Lucy's urn with his hands and let out a sob, a few stray tears rolling down the side of his face.

"How do I look, Luce? I still remember this was your favorite outfit of mine. It still is right?"

Some time passed as Natsu kept talking to Lucy, reliving memories of their time together while apologizing for not being a good husband. He had decided to take Lucy on a walk to the tree where Lucy had Natsu carve out the message that week. Bringing a pocketknife and Lucy's phone with him, he began his walk. The air of the countryside left bittersweet memories and Natsu had to resist letting tears fall, remembering all the times they had shared and thinking about all the times they could've shared, had he not taken the job in the city. A few moments passed as he continued to look around the neighborhood, remembering why they had moved there in the first place and Lucy's reaction to it.

"_I love it, Natsu…"_

"_Then let's get it."_

"_But it's an hour away from your work."_

"_If you love it then I don't really mind. It's only sixty minutes to and then sixty minutes back. It's not an impossible feat to commute back and forth, Luce."_

Natsu scoffed, thinking at how stupid he was for thinking it wasn't impossible. But he remembered that he had done it because Lucy loved it. Lucy, his wife, his everything, loved it and that was all that mattered. He blamed himself for not keeping his promise and for making the possible impossible.

The pink-haired man arrived at the path that they had gone to and made his way up to the tree that he had carved into at Lucy's request. He gave Lucy's urn a kiss before pulling out his wife's phone and deciphering the message that he had carved months ago. Uncontrollably crying at the deciphered message followed by Natsu's muffled sobs and whispers for forgiveness soon filled the air. By the time Natsu had calmed down, the sun began to set. He grabbed the pocketknife and carefully set Lucy's urn down, before using Lucy's phone as a translator and carving out his own message in binary, right after the first message. He finished the carving with their initials and left for home with Lucy's urn in his arms.

"_**01010011 01101111 00100000 01100001 01101101 00100000 01001001**_

_**N.D. & L.D.**_"

And of course, Natsu knew what he had carved on the tree. His answer to Lucy's message, was:

"_**So am I**_

_**N.D. & L.D.**_"

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Natsu slept rather well that night. His emotions drained him of all his energy as he fell onto his and Lucy's shared bed. He stayed on his side of the bed while pulling Lucy's pillow into his embrace. Lucy's scent still lingered in the pillow and the blanket, making Natsu sigh in content before closing his eyes.

That night, he wasn't haunted by nightmares, but was greeted by Lucy who gave him a genuine smile and a hug in return, burying his head in Natsu's collarbone before looking up and pecking his lips.

"_**I'll always love you, dragon. Even when I'm gone…**_"

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The next morning, Natsu woke up to the sound of rain sputtering against the windows. It was raining rather hard and the sky was a dull shade of grey. As he got out of bed, his senses alerted him of a pleasant smell coming from downstairs.

He got changed and as he headed down the stairs, he heard footsteps from the living room. Whoever it was seemed to have heard Natsu as well, since the footsteps were getting louder. As they made eye contact, Natsu muttered out a sheepish 'hello' while the other just glared at him before scoffing and abruptly grabbing his belongings and leaving, turning as he reached the door.

"There's food in the kitchen. Please clean up afterwards."

"L–Loke, wait!"

That's when it set in. Loke was the one who made the shrine for Lucy. He was the one who cooked breakfast to offer to Lucy and he was the one who cleaned up and tidied the house for Lucy. He stayed behind, even after Lucy was gone, and never left her side, unlike the poor excuse of a husband that was himself, Natsu thought. The reality of the situation hit Natsu harder than a truck and he found himself reduced to tears, guilty and ashamed for all the pain he caused to the one person he loved. It took him too long to realize that he truly only wanted Lucy and when he did, it was already too late. He left, just like how Loke had left just now, abruptly and without another word.

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Natsu spent the rest of the morning eating breakfast with Lucy before cleaning up. He told his wife that he was never going to leave her again and would be the husband that he should've been from the start. He was going to be the Natsu that Lucy fell in love with again and would ask for Lucy's forgiveness until he finally got it.

It was early afternoon when Natsu had decided he was going to treat Lucy to a meal from a restaurant that Natsu had discovered and always wanted to take her to when he first moved into the city. He had taken a bus back to the city, with a picture of Lucy framed in his bag as well as their framed wedding picture with it. The ride back to the city was long thanks to traffic and it was late in the afternoon when they had arrived. Natsu decided he would go shopping for the two of them as they waited for their reservation at the restaurant.

Walking down the city streets, he looked down at his finger where his wedding ring sat and closed his eyes as he remembered the day of their wedding and how happy they were to be together as a married couple under the rays of the sun as they exchanged their vows. Natsu felt a trickle of wetness on his face as he opened his eyes, unsure of whether or not they were his tears or the rain that began to come down. He looked back down at his ring before muttering another apology to his wife and asking her for forgiveness before shutting his eyes, suppressing the tears from coming out.

Natsu was in the middle of crossing the train tracks when the crossing arm was already down. A bright light, a loud whistle and screams from pedestrians around him brought him back to reality, but it was too late. As Natsu looked up towards the bright light headed his way, he saw Lucy in the light, as she was when they had gotten married, with a smile on her face and her arms outstretched. He noticed Lucy mouthing something to him and when he realized what his wife was telling him, he knew that he was given a second chance for a new beginning. A new beginning where he could go back to spending the days with the one person he loved, the one he never stopped loving and the one person he'll always love.

"I love you, Lucy."

Saying those words he now knew what meant so much more than ever before, Natsu reached out for his wife, as he closed his eyes, and smiled.

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Natsu woke up in his and Lucy's bed to the sound of birds singing and the sun's warm rays shining through the window. He rubbed his eyes a few times before looking around the sunlit room and remarked how the already pure white room seemed to glow even brighter. He was distracted from his senses when he heard the door when he heard the door opening and he turned to face the door.

A smile found its way to Natsu's face as the door opened and he saw who was behind it. There she was, glowing ethereally as she did when they had first met, holding a tray with breakfast for two and coffees just the way they liked it.

As she set the food on the bedside table, Natsu couldn't resist wrapping his arms around his wife and pulling her in for a kiss he had missed so much. When they broke apart, Lucy looked up at him smiling and Natsu knew that this was the ending they had both wanted.

"Good morning, dragon."

"Is this real, Lucy?"

"It's as real as you want it to be."

Taking in his surroundings, Natsu cupped Lucy's cheeks and gave her another sweet kiss, her smile never leaving her face.

This, Natsu thought, was real, and that's all that mattered.

"I'm home, Lucy. I'm finally back where I belong."

"Welcome home, Natsu.."

"Yes… Home.."


End file.
